A hypertext reader which performs a reading process on a hierarchically constructed hypertext

ABSTRACT

In a process for sequentially searching pages which are hierarchically constructed such as a WWW browser or the like, by controlling in a manner such that an instruction from automatic linking instruction means is used as a trigger, a first non-read anchor is searched by anchor search means, and if there is the non-read anchor, a hyper text of a network on the link destination side is accessed, and if there is no non-read anchor, the processing routine is returned to the original page. Thus, upon reading the hyper text, the operability is improved by an automatic linking process.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The invention relates to information processing apparatus and method and, more particularly, to a hyper text reader such as a WWW (World Wide Web) browser or the like for performing a reading process of a hyper text which is hierarchically constructed.

[0003] 2. Related Background Art

[0004] As a technique of a conventional hyper text reader such as a WWW browser or the like, a “Navigator” (made by Netscape Co., Ltd.), an “Internet Explorer” (made by Microsoft Co., Ltd.), or the like has been known.

[0005]FIG. 8 shows a constructional example of a conventional hyper text reader. FIG. 9 shows expression contents of a conventional WWW browser 24 displayed on a display screen of display means 5 in FIG. 8. A conventional reading process of a hyper text document will now be described hereinbelow.

[0006] Hitherto, in case of reading a hyper text document 62 in a network 61 on the link destination side shown in FIG. 8, in a document of a page 27 which is hierarchically constructed and can be expressed by a display screen as shown in FIG. 9, a drawing object called an anchor A which is expressed by a text or an image shown by an underline, a highlight, or the like is instructed by using instruction means 1 such as mouse, keyboard, or the like, thereby accessing the link destination shown in the anchor A.

[0007] In this instance, a mark indicating that the document has already been read is added to the accessed anchor A by mark addition means 2. The present page position is registered into a page position memory stack 6 by page position registration means 3. The hyper text document 62 in the network 61 on the link destination side is searched by access means 4. A desired page of the accessed hyper text document 62 is displayed by the display means 5.

[0008] To return the display screen to an original page (business trip report page) 27, a preceding button 22 written as “BACK” or the like is instructed by the instruction means 1, so that page position call means 8 obtains a page position from the page position memory stack 6, thereby making it possible to access to the original page 27. The accessed original page 27 is displayed by the display means 5. Further, to progress the display screen to a next page, by instructing a succeeding button 21 by the instruction means 1, the apparatus can access to the next page by a process similar to that of the preceding button 22 and display. In a display screen as shown in FIG. 9 after the original page or next page was accessed as mentioned above, by instructing the anchor A by the instruction means 1, the hyper text document 62 can be read.

[0009] In the conventional construction as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, to instruct the anchor A in the document in the page 27 which is hierarchically constructed, as mentioned above, first by instructing the succeeding button 21 or preceding button 22 by the instruction means 1, a target page to be read (for example, business trip report page) is displayed on the display screen. In the target page, by instructing the anchor A of the underlined document or the like by the instruction means 1, the hyper text document 62 is read through the access means 4.

[0010] To read the hyper text document 62 as mentioned above, the operations of the succeeding button 21 and preceding button 22 to change the display screen and the operation to instruct the anchor A to be accessed to the link destination have to be properly judged and executed each time by the operator. Particularly, in case of searching the anchor A which is not read yet, the pages which were hierarchically constructed have to be sequentially traced, it takes time for the processing operation and an operability is bad.

[0011] Generally, in many cases, to fill up the formed hyper text document, the person who makes a page allows an anchor to link with an associated external page to be included. There is a case where whether the anchor is an anchor to be accessed to the outside or not cannot be discriminated if only characters or image written in the anchor are used. In such a case, according to the conventional techniques, by moving a mouse cursor to a position over the anchor, the link destination of the anchor can be displayed in a part of the screen.

[0012] Since the link destination cannot be known if the mouse is not matched with position of the anchor by moving, in the case where the operator who executes the reading operation merely wants to obtain only information which is derived from a server of the accessed page, it is necessary to match the position of the mouse cursor with that of the anchor and to confirm the link destination every time, so that the operability deteriorates.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0013] It is an object of the invention to provide information processing apparatus and method which can improve an operability by performing an automatic linking process when a hyper test is read.

[0014] According to the invention, there is provided an information processing apparatus for reading a hyper text on a link destination side by instructing anchors of pages which are hierarchically constructed, comprising: automatic linking instruction means for instructing to start an automatic linking of the hierarchically constructed pages; anchor search means for searching non-read anchors in the hierarchically constructed pages on the basis of the start instruction; and link destination access means for, when the non-read anchor exists, accessing to the hyper text on the link destination side corresponding to the searched non-read anchors.

[0015] According to the invention, there is also provided an information processing apparatus for reading a hyper text on a link destination side by instructing anchors of pages which are hierarchically constructed, comprising: automatic linking instruction means for instructing to start an automatic linking of the hierarchically constructed pages; anchor search means for searching non-read anchors in the hierarchically constructed pages on the basis of the start instruction; memory means for storing a page position; mark addition means for, when the non-read anchor exists, adding an “already read” mark to such an anchor; registration means for registering a page position of the anchor to which the “already read” mark was added into the memory means; link destination access means for accessing to the hyper text on the link destination side corresponding to the searched non-read anchor; page position call means for calling the page position stored in the memory means when the non-read anchor does not exist; and means for accessing so as to return to the called page position.

[0016] According to the invention, there is provided an information processing method of reading a hyper text on a link destination side by instructing anchors of hierarchically constructed pages, comprising: an automatic linking instructing step of instructing to start an automatic linking of the hierarchically constructed pages; an anchor searching step of searching non-read anchors in the hierarchically constructed pages on the basis of the start instruction; and a step of, when the non-read anchor exists, accessing to the hyper text on the link destination side corresponding to the searched non-read anchors.

[0017] According to the invention, there is also provided an information processing method of reading a hyper text on a link destination side by instructing anchors of pages which are hierarchically constructed, comprising: an automatic linking instructing step of instructing to start an automatic linking of the hierarchically constructed pages; an anchor searching step of searching non-read anchors in the hierarchically constructed pages on the basis of the start instruction; a step of, when the non-read anchor exists, adding an “already read” mark to such an anchor; a step of registering a page position of the anchor to which the “already read” mark was added into a memory area; a step of accessing to the hyper text on the link destination side corresponding to the searched non-read anchor; a step of calling the page position stored in the memory area when the non-read anchor does not exist; and a step of accessing so as to return to the called page position.

[0018] According to the invention, there is provided a recording medium in which a reading control program for allowing a computer to control a reading operation of a hyper text corresponding to anchors of pages which are hierarchically constructed has been recorded, wherein the control program allows the computer to execute the steps of: instructing to start an automatic linking of the hierarchically constructed pages; searching non-read anchors in the hierarchically constructed pages on the basis of the start instruction; and when the non-read anchor exists, accessing to a hyper text on a link destination side corresponding to the searched non-read anchor.

[0019] According to the invention, there is provided a recording medium in which a reading control program for allowing a computer to control a reading operation of a hyper text corresponding to anchors of pages which are hierarchically constructed has been recorded, wherein the control program comprises the steps of: executing a start instruction of an automatic linking of the hierarchically constructed pages; searching non-read anchors in the hierarchically constructed pages on the basis of the start instruction; when the non-read anchor exists, adding an “already read” mark to the anchor; registering a page position of the anchor to which the “already read” mark was added into a memory area; accessing a hyper text on a link destination side corresponding to the searched non-read anchor; calling the page position stored in the memory area when the non-read anchor does not exist; and accessing so as to return to the called page position.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020]FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a construction of a browser according to the first embodiment of the invention;

[0021]FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the contents of a browser displayed on a screen;

[0022]FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an automatic linking process according to the invention;

[0023]FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a schematic construction of an information processing apparatus according to the invention;

[0024]FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a memory map;

[0025]FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an automatic linking process according to the second embodiment of the invention;

[0026]FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a memory map;

[0027]FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a construction of a conventional browser; and

[0028]FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing contents of the conventional browser displayed on the screen.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0029] The invention will now be described in detail hereinbelow with reference to the drawings.

(a) First Embodiment

[0030] The first embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5. Explanation about portions (refer to FIGS. 8 and 9) similar to those of the conventional technique is omitted and are designated by the same reference numerals as those in the conventional technique.

[0031] First, a whole construction of an information processing apparatus according to the embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. FIG. 4 shows a construction of a hardware construction of the apparatus. When a power source of an apparatus 100 is turned on, an operating system (OS) 70 and a Window system 71 which have previously been stored in an ROM 52 are activated from a CPU 51. Data processes are executed through a bus 59 by using an RAM 53 as a main storage. A display controller 54, an input device controller 56, and a network interface 60 start to operate, respectively.

[0032] A display is performed to a display apparatus 55 as display means 5. By operating a mouse 57 or a keyboard 58, it is possible to access to the network 61.

[0033]FIG. 5 shows a memory map of the RAM 53 as a main storage when the data processes are executed. In addition to the foregoing operating system 70 and window system 71, the page position memory stack area 6 to store a page position, a WWW browser 80 having a graphical user interface as shown in FIG. 2 by which the data processes according to the invention are executed, and the like have been stored in the RAM 53. An executing program of the WWW browser 80 is shown in a flowchart of FIG. 3, which will be explained hereinlater. The WWW browser 80 constructed by such software is stored in the ROM 52 or RAM 53 as in the embodiment. However, it can be also stored as a separate device into a memory medium such as a floppy disk or the like.

[0034] The WWW browser used here denotes software for reading a hyper text called an HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language) format constructed on the internet on the basis of an HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol).

[0035] The construction of the WWW browser 80 according to the embodiment will now be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of the construction of the WWW browser 80. In FIG. 1, the anchor A, succeeding button 21, preceding button 22, mark addition means 2, page position registration means 3, access means 4, page position memory stack 6, and page position call means 8 are similar to those in the construction of the conventional WWW browser 24 mentioned above.

[0036] In the embodiment, automatic linking button 9 serving as automatic linking instruction means and an anchor search means 10 are newly provided. The automatic linking button 9 instructs the start to perform the automatic linking of the page 27 which is hierarchically constructed as shown in FIG. 2. The anchor search means 10 searches the non-read anchor A in the hierarchically constructed pages 27 on the basis of the start instruction for the automatic linking by the automatic linking button 9.

[0037]FIGS. 1 and 4 will now be mutually referred. The WWW browser 80 is stored in the ROM 52 or RAM 53. The access means 4 corresponds to the network interface 60. The instruction means 1 corresponds to the mouse 57 or keyboard 58.

[0038] A flow of the automatic linking process according to the embodiment will now be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 3. When the WWW browser 80 accesses to a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) set by the user, a page on the access destination side can be read and the apparatus enters the subsequent input waiting mode as shown in FIG. 2.

[0039] When the automatic linking button 9 is clocked by the mouse 57, an automatic linking process shown in the flowchart of FIG. 3 is executed. A main routine and the other processes are similar to those of the existing WWW browser and the details of those processes are omitted here.

[0040] In step S41, the next anchor is searched. In step S42, whether the next anchor A exists or not is discriminated from a result in step S41. If the anchor A exists, step S43 is executed. If NO, step S48 is executed.

[0041] In step S43, a check is made to see if an “already read” mark (showing that the anchor has already been read) has been added to the searched anchor A. If YES, the processing routine is returned to step S41 and the next anchor A is searched. In this case, to show the addition of the “already read” mark, it is desirable to perform a process such that a color of an underline indicative of the anchor A changes, a character is inverted, or the like. If the “already read” mark is not added to the searched anchor A, step S44 is executed.

[0042] In step S44, the “already read” mark is added to the searched anchor A. In step S45, the present page position is registered into the page position memory stack 6 and a stack pointer is updated. In step S46, the hyper text document 62 on the network 61 as a link destination corresponding to the searched anchor A is accessed. In step S47, the accessed page is displayed and the automatic linking process is finished.

[0043] In step S48, since the anchor as a search result does not exist, the page position is called from the page position memory stack 6, the page position registered in the stack is deleted, and the stack pointer is returned. In step S49, the page position called from the page position memory stack 6 is accessed and step S47 is executed. Since the operation for the automatic linking process as mentioned above can be easily performed by merely repeating the clicking operation of the automatic linking button 9, the operability can be improved.

(b) Second Embodiment

[0044] The second embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. Explanation with respect to portions similar to those in the foregoing first embodiment is omitted.

[0045] The embodiment is an example in case of changing searching conditions of the anchor in the WWW browser 80 described in the foregoing first embodiment.

[0046]FIG. 7 is a memory map showing a server address storage area 81 newly assured in the RAM 53. An IP address of the WWW server which is at present being accessed is stored here. The IP address of the WWW server is added to the searching conditions. By limiting the searching conditions into a server of the page that is at present being accessed, only target information can be read without diverging the access to the outside.

[0047] A flow for the automatic linking process will now be described with reference to a flowchart of FIG. 6. Since steps S41, S43, S44, S45, S46, S47, S48, and S49 are similar to those in the flowchart of FIG. 3 of the foregoing first embodiment, their descriptions are omitted.

[0048] In step S42, if the searching condition is YES, step S71 is executed. In step S71, a check is made to see if the searched anchor is the anchor to the external server. If it is the anchor to the external server, step S41 is executed. If NO, step S43 is executed. That is, in the embodiment, the searching conditions are limited in the server of the page which is at present being accessed so as not to diverge the access to the outside.

[0049] By executing the processes as mentioned above, only the target page on the WWW server can be read by the automatic linking button 9 without being anxious about whether the access is a link to the outside or not. The operability can be further improved.

[0050] According to the embodiment as described above, in the hyper text reader such as a WWW browser or the like, an instruction from the automatic linking instruction means is used as a trigger and the first non-read anchor is searched by the anchor search means. If there is the non-read anchor, the link destination is accessed. If there is no non-read anchor, the processing routine is returned to the original page. Therefore, by performing only the simple operation such that the automatic linking instruction means is merely repetitively continuously depressed, the pages which are hierarchically constructed can be sequentially traced, so that the operability can be improved.

[0051] According to the embodiment, since the condition about whether the searched anchor is the anchor to the external server or not is added to the searching conditions, the searching conditions are limited into the server of the page that is at present being accessed and the page can be read. Thus, the operability can be further improved. 

What is claimed is:
 1. An information processing apparatus for reading a hyper text on a link destination side by instructing anchors of pages which are hierarchically constructed, comprising: automatic linking instruction means for instructing to start an automatic linking of said hierarchically constructed pages; anchor search means for searching non-read anchors in said hierarchically constructed pages on the basis of said start instruction; and link destination access means for, when said non-read anchor exists, accessing to the hyper text on the link destination side corresponding to said searched non-read anchor.
 2. An information processing apparatus for reading a hyper text on a link destination side by instructing anchors of pages which are hierarchically constructed, comprising: automatic linking instruction means for instructing to start an automatic linking of said hierarchically constructed pages; anchor search means for searching non-read anchors in said hierarchically constructed pages on the basis of said start instruction; memory means for storing a page position; mark addition means for, when said non-read anchor exists, adding an “already read” mark to said anchor; registration means for registering a page position of the anchor to which said “already read” mark was added into said memory means; link destination access means for accessing to the hyper text on the link destination side corresponding to said searched non-read anchor; page position call means for calling the page position stored in said memory means when said non-read anchor does not exist; and means for accessing so as to return to said called page position.
 3. An apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein said anchor search means has: recognition means for recognizing the non-read anchor in which the link destination exceeding a preset accessing range has been set; and control means for controlling so as not to search the non-read anchor recognized by said recognition means.
 4. An apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising display means for displaying accessed contents.
 5. An information processing method of reading a hyper text on a link destination side by instructing anchors of pages which are hierarchically constructed, comprising: an automatic linking instructing step of instructing to start an automatic linking of said hierarchically constructed pages; an anchor searching step of searching non-read anchors in said hierarchically constructed pages on the basis of said start instruction; and a step of, when said non-read anchor exists, accessing to the hyper text on the link destination side corresponding to said searched non-read anchor.
 6. An information processing method of reading a hyper text on a link destination side by instructing anchors of pages which are hierarchically constructed, comprising: an automatic linking instructing step of instructing to start an automatic linking of said hierarchically constructed pages; an anchor searching step of searching non-read anchors in said hierarchically constructed pages on the basis of said start instruction; a step of, when said non-read anchor exists, adding an “already read” mark to said anchor; a step of registering a page position of the anchor said “already read” mark was added into a memory area; a step of accessing to the hyper text on the link destination side corresponding-to said searched nonread anchor; a step of calling the page position stored in said memory area when said non-read anchor does not exist; and a step of accessing so as to return to said called page position.
 7. A method according to claim 5 , wherein said anchor searching step has: a recognizing step of recognizing the non-read anchor in which the link destination exceeding a preset accessing range has been set; and a control step of controlling so as not to search the non-read anchor recognized.
 8. A method according to claim 5 , further comprising a displaying step of displaying accessed contents.
 9. A recording medium in which a reading control program for allowing a computer to control a reading operation of a hyper text corresponding to anchors of pages which are hierarchically constructed has been recorded, wherein said control program allows the computer to execute the steps of: instructing to start an automatic linking of said hierarchically constructed pages; searching non-read anchors in said hierarchically constructed pages on the basis of said start instruction; and when said non-read anchor exists, accessing to a hyper text on a link destination side corresponding to said searched non-read anchor.
 10. A recording medium in which a reading control program for allowing a computer to control a reading operation of a hyper text corresponding to anchors of pages which are hierarchically constructed has been recorded, wherein said control program comprises the steps of: executing a start instruction of an automatic linking of said hierarchically constructed pages; searching non-read anchors in said hierarchically constructed pages on the basis of said start instruction; when said non-read anchor exists, adding an “already read” mark to said anchor; registering a page position of the anchor to which said “already read” mark was added into a memory area; accessing to a hyper text on a link destination side corresponding to said searched non-read anchor; calling the page position stored in said memory area when said non-read anchor does not exist; and accessing so as to return to said called page position.
 11. A medium according to claim 9 , wherein a control is made so as to recognize the non-read anchor in which the link destination exceeding a preset accessing range has been set and not to search said recognized non-read anchor.
 12. A medium according to claim 9 , wherein said accessed contents are displayed. 